Interstate 90 car fire backs up traffic

Lauren Long/The Post-StandardNorth Chittenango Fire Co. crews work to put out a car fire on Interstate 90 this afternoon.

Both eastbound lanes of I-90 were closed about 20 minutes this afternoon as firefighters extinguished a car fire just east of the 481 exit near mile marker 273 in Sullivan, state police said. Firefighters responded at 5 p.m., said North Chittenango Fire Chief Dennis Simmons. By the time firefighters arrived, the entire car was engulfed in flames, fueled by gas in the tank.

No one was in the car when firefighters arrived, and no one was injured, he said. What caused the Saturn sedan to catch fire is still under investigation, Simmons said.

Traffic was temporarily backed up for three miles. Both lanes of I-90 were reopened by about 5:20 p.m., said state police Sgt. Robert Simon.